


He Found You

by harmony88



Series: Forever With You: Part 2 [19]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Aliens, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, Humor, Love, Romance, Sex, Sneaking Around, Story Arc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-06
Updated: 2021-03-06
Packaged: 2021-03-18 03:53:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29852151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/harmony88/pseuds/harmony88
Summary: COMPLETEWhen the Doctor and Rose get an SOS text from Martha, they find themselves dealing with not one, but three mysteries, including one involving the relationship of two of their friends.“She saw a watch on the table she recognized, and her jaw dropped open. “Oh, my God..”“What?” the Doctor asked, setting down pillows from the sofa he had checked behind.“Mickey,” she said, and the Doctor just stared at her.“What about him?” he asked, and Rose pointed to the watch.“Mum got him that for Christmas last year. Remember?” she whispered, and the Doctor walked over to her, taking it.“Lots of people have watches, Rose,” he said, and she just gave him a look. “What?”
Relationships: Martha Jones/Mickey Smith, Tenth Doctor/Rose Tyler
Series: Forever With You: Part 2 [19]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2111892
Comments: 10
Kudos: 24





	1. Worship in the Bedroom

The TARDIS had over 10,000 different pieces of machinery, all of which he has had to repair at one point or another. Cogs, gears, levers, dials, wires, rotors, circuits, resistors, capacitors, modules, timers, and buttons all rest around the console or under the grating, and that didn’t include the ship’s innate connection to _time,_ and the millions and millions of pulsations that sit beneath their feet and take them where they want to go. 

He knew each one intimately. His brain was able to calibrate and calculate exactly what was needed to adjust any given piece at any given time, and yet, somehow, putting together a damn crib was turning out to be one of the hardest things he’d ever tried to do. 

He blamed Jackie Tyler. 

He was sitting in the nursery on his beloved ship, surrounded by slabs of wood and random bolts and materials, staring at an instruction manual written in five languages, all of which he knew fluently, and none of which made things any clearer. 

Rose walked in, slightly concerned when she heard his muttering, and she covered her mouth behind her hand to hide her amusement when she saw the state of the room and the state of _him,_ which was so utterly attractive it should be illegal. 

He had taken off his suit coat and his tie was halfway undone. His sleeves were rolled above his elbows, hair wild as ever, and his face was so creased she could probably fit a coin in the lines currently cemented into his brow and it would stay in place. 

“What’s going on here?” she said, her voice on the brink of laughter. He looked up and stared at her, too dumbfounded by his task to take in how breathtakingly beautiful _she_ looked. Her hair was up in a messy bun, showing off her hoop earrings, and she was wearing a floral maternity dress that hugged every part of her curves. Her belly, now 21 weeks along, was defined but not forcing her to waddle or adjust her center of gravity completely, and it looked lovely in this dress, it truly did, and he truly couldn’t focus on that at the moment. 

“Why?” he asked, holding up the instructions, and the exasperation in his voice broke her concentration and she laughed. 

“Pete was able to do it with Tony,” she said, and he just raised an eyebrow at her, turning back to his mess, and he just shook his head. 

“It’s just rubbish,” he said. “Too many... parts. Parts, Rose! Why can’t it just be one slab of wood gets attached to another slab of wood, and -” 

“Pretty sure it is, no?” she teased, and he ignored her, once again trying to make some progress. “Can the TARDIS do it?” 

“The TARDIS isn’t her father,” he mumbled, and Rose rubbed her lips together as she brushed her hand across her belly, and she leaned against the wall. 

“That would be a story, wouldn’t it?” she said with a smile, and he just looked at her, a small smirk twitching at the corner of his mouth that he repressed, still too irritated with this crib to let Rose’s wit break him just yet. 

He decided two can play at that game. 

“Well, it would be a short one. The TARDIS would not be able to satisfy you like I can, Rose Tyler,” he flirted, and she flashed him a look. 

“Careful,” she hummed, “Keep insulting her and she’ll hide your hair gel.” 

He laughed, and she bit her lip, so very pleased with herself for making him smile that he groaned a little, having wanted the game to continue, and their eyes danced, still flirting as she moved to sit next to him. 

“Do you want to take a break?” she asked, and he sighed, pulling her into a kiss. 

“No,” he said. “But it’s bloody ridiculous.” 

“Poor thing,” she said, brushing his hair back and he just gave her a look. “What about the sonic?” 

“It’s wood,” he said begrudgingly, almost pouting, and it made her laugh, which she sort of regretted. “I’ve got it, Rose.”

“Okay,” she said, looking down at the pieces. It did seem a bit much, she had to give him that. For some reason it came completely unassembled, to the point where he had to build each slab of the entire frame from scratch, and just from looking at it she could tell it wasn’t exactly builder-friendly.

She reached over and grabbed the wolf toy they had bought a couple of months back, holding it in her arms while he continued to work. 

“Figures your mother would think this was a good idea,” he said and she just smiled. 

“I think she knows how much you like to solve problems and puzzles,” she whispered. “She was trying to be nice.” 

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair, looking over at her. “She was trying to do something, that’s for sure.”

He winked, both aware he was teasing, and he returned to the task at hand, remembering how excited Jackie had been to give this to them the day before when they stopped by for a quick visit, and he was rather touched by the gesture despite how frustrated he currently felt. 

He just….really needed a setting for wood. 

Rose watched for a bit, still bantering and flirting with him, and he eventually figured it out. He made sure to ramble again about how unnecessarily complicated it was, and he began to list off all the things he would have done differently as Rose helped him hold the frame together so he could lock it in place. He used a normal screwdriver because he had to, twisting slowly, and Rose made fun of his scowl. 

He wasn’t actually upset, and she knew this. It was a milestone, what he was assembling, proof that their baby is coming and will sleep amongst the stars, and the entire ship was giddy and joyous, even with the cork board of unanswered questions still sitting in the library. 

The Doctor rolled the crib in place at long last, taking a step back to stare at it as Rose dropped the wolf toy inside, and he held her hand. 

“Well,” he said, “What do you want for lunch?” 

They both burst into laughter and he pulled her into a hug, still looking at the crib. He was feeling a lot of different things, but he couldn’t put words to them yet, and he let Rose’s heartbeat in his ring sync up to his as much as it could as she rested in his arms, and he began to rub her back. 

She pulled away to kiss him, small tender pecks that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up, and she twisted in his arms to look at the crib, both letting it hit them again. 

A daughter. 

The Doctor leaned his head on top of hers, his arms wrapped around her waist and resting on her tummy, and she pulled her hair to the side, giving him a fresh new whiff of her pheromones, and he smiled, leaning down to kiss his favorite spot on her neck. 

“Feels nice,” she whispered, and he kissed her again. 

“Yeah?” he murmured, his breath hitting her skin in just the right way. She bit her lip as arousal began to take its course, as it always did, in the way that only he could stir inside of her, and she pressed her bum against his groin. He brought his hands to her breasts, the heat coursing in her sparking desire in him.

He marveled at the way they felt as he gently rubbed, aware they might be a bit tender. Before, her breasts fit in hands as if they were made to hold them (which they both knew they kind of were), but they were much larger now, a fact he didn’t mind in the slightest and he often found rather distracting. She hitched her breath as he continued to carefully and skillfully grope her, and he pressed his lips to her ear. “You’re perfect.” 

“Nah, you’re just turned on,” she breathed heavily, and he pulled her against him, letting her feel just how true that statement was. 

“Yes,” he whispered. “And which _perfect,_ pink and yellow and gold human is to blame for that, hm?” 

She smiled and rested her head on his shoulder, still wrapped in his arms with her back against his chest, and he brought his hands to her waist, tracing her curves slowly. Each stroke of his fingers ignited something new inside of her, and he noticed, finally, just how lovely she was in the dress she was wearing.

He stopped breathing, captivated by her entirely as she brought her hand into his hair. 

“I want...Rose…” he said huskily, and she let out a noise that made him groan. “Oh, I don’t want to mess up this dress. It’s...” 

He cursed in Gallifreyan, and she was a complete puddle. 

“Take it off, then,” she demanded, and he kissed her neck slowly, pulling the straps down off of her shoulders and moving his lips to the freshly exposed skin, still holding her to him as he again felt each curve that drove him wild, this time flesh to flesh, his perfect human caught in his arms. 

The dress fell to the ground and he turned her around so he could look at her. She wasn’t wearing a bra as the dress had one built in, and her entire body made him gulp, so deliciously soft and silky and _womanly,_ and he just stared at her, drinking her up like a medicine he couldn’t live without. He just smiled in awe, realizing she was going through so much change so she could bring his child into the universe, and he just… 

Something innately primal snapped inside of him, thinking about all she was doing for their family, and the moment that word entered his brain he needed to worship her like the glowing goddess he knew she was. 

“Come here,” he whispered, pulling her back to him in a searing yet tender kiss, one that immediately made her almost lose her balance, and he left her dress on the floor as he led her out of the room, wanting to do this on their bed. 

She could sense a new level of devotion coming from him in her mind, even with their blocks currently up, and when they spoke it was entirely in Gallifreyan, as if English just wouldn’t do his prayers justice as he told her how beautiful she was. She laughed, unsure where this was all coming from, but he laid her on the bed carefully, tucked on her side so he could slide in behind her, and he began to plant kisses down her entire body. “Don’t move,” he instructed, still in Gallifreyan, and she watched him for a moment as he started at her ankles, then moved to her calves, then her knees, her thighs, which he spent a bit more time at the closer he got to the part of her that wanted him most, but he steered clear, knowing exactly what he was doing. 

She said his name, the syllables like a chant that made him grip the blankets for a moment. 

He should have worshipped her sooner. 

She cried out as he began to kiss her hips, and in the back of his mind he registered faint stretch marks starting to form around her belly, which only igniting his need to care for her more, finding them impossibly sexy and perfect, and he shifted the direction of his mouth a little, brushing his tongue against them. 

She squirmed and tried to adjust her angle on the bed but he stopped her, still not wanting her to move as he kissed under her breasts, lapping her skin a little with his tongue. 

She began to say words, still in Gallifreyan that he couldn’t make out, muffled a little by the pillows, and it spurred him on, wanting to make her feel as good as he knew she deserved; this woman who had saved him when he didn’t know he needed saving, who had stood by him when he knew he didn’t deserve it, who somehow loved him enough to share her life with him, to change her biology willingly because she didn’t want to leave him. This impossible human, this Woman of Time, who was giving him a family again and already had in so many ways. 

He whispered how much he loved her, still in his native tongue, and it occurred to her that they’d never made love like this before, and their minds weren’t even connected yet. It felt ritualistic, almost, as his lips once again found her neck, before he finally brought them to her mouth. 

Her kiss was hungry, urgent, and wild, and it took him entirely by surprise. She flipped him over, exactly how she was able to do that as pregnant as she was he had no idea, and she pinned his arms to the mattress with her hands as she hovered above him, and he had a moment where he thought about stopping her so he could continue to cherish her, but she melted their bodies together and he cried her name, everything about her more than he expected. She was wetter, tighter, and warmer than he remembered, and considering the last time they made love he broke a chair at the way she made him feel, he feared for their bed. 

She moved her body, and he let her do what she wanted, unable to form words or thoughts unless they were about her, and his eyes, which had been closed, opened to see her arch her head back and press her hands to his chest right between his hearts as she reached her peak, and he was mesmerized. 

“Rose….” he whispered, unsure what language it was in, and she screamed. The sound was visceral in his chest, radiating through him, and he smiled at her, also aware that all of this was happening before their minds connected, and he couldn’t resist opening those doors, watching and feeling what it did to her with pure adoration. 

“My turn,” he said, very much in Gallifreyan and she nodded, rocking her body against him to help him along. He stopped her then, shaking his head to tell her that’s not what he meant and he sat up, kissing her with one arm supporting himself on the mattress and the other tangled in her hair, wet open mouthed kisses that he very rarely did to this degree, and only in this room. 

She said more words he couldn’t understand as he very slowly and very gently laid her back down on her other side, and he repeated his method from before, starting with her ankles and working up to her neck, and she shuddered at every touch. Their minds were open and she knew exactly _why_ he was doing this, and the love she felt for him washed through her, rendering both of them speechless. 

“Stop,” she whispered in English as he was about to kiss her again, and he did. He wasn’t alarmed, he just pulled back to look at her as she shifted in his arms to face him, both on their sides now, and she cupped her hand to his cheek. “My Doctor.” 

“Hello,” he said, smiling at her, and she felt a few tears trickle down the side of her face, which he caught with his thumb and wiped away. “Are you okay?” 

“I…” she said, letting out a shaky breath. “Of course I am. I’m just…” 

“Me too,” he said with a soft smile, and she nodded. 

“Yeah?” she asked. 

“Yes,” he murmured. “Do you want to stop?” 

“No,” she said. “No, come here.” 

Her lips found his, and he wrapped his arm over her waist to pull her as close as she could be, tucking his leg over hers as well. They stayed there for a moment, until she clawed the skin on his back and spoke again in Gallifreyan, asking to feel him, and he was more than happy to oblige, rocking in perfect tandem with her, minds, hearts, and souls connected, both marveling at how the word _love,_ sometimes, just wasn’t enough. 

The tension built together and unwound together, Rose glistening in sweat by the time they were done, and the Doctor pressed his forehead to hers. “Forever.” 

“And ever,” she somehow managed to say, and he swallowed hard as he pulled her to his chest and held her. Neither spoke, for they’d said it all already, and Rose’s limbs felt like jelly, unable to move even if she wanted to. Minutes passed, and the Doctor was almost drifting off when Rose finally shifted a little, pulling back just enough to be able to look at him.

“You know I’m happy to do this, right? Carry her?” she asked. He creased his brow just a little and processed her question, his brain still slightly mush, and he nodded. 

“Of course,” he said. “I just wanted you to know how much it all means, Rose. What you mean.” 

“Mmmm, such a sap,” she whispered and he chuckled a little, kissing her nose. 

“Indeed,” he said. “Oh well.” 

She smiled and he winked. She realized she was rather thirsty, and since their minds were connected he knew instantly. Before she was able to try to get up and get water he was squeezing her hand and doing it himself, and she decided to move to the ensuite to clean up. 

She walked into the nursery and slipped her dress back on, smiling when she saw the crib again and he walked in behind her, still naked as he handed her a glass of water and kissed her shoulder. 

“I’m going to take a shower,” he said, and she nodded, drinking down the entire glass. He chuckled and offered to take it back but she shook her head and pushed him toward the bedroom again so he could clean up, too, and she left it on the floor as she moved to the switch on the wall, flipping the lights off. 

The projection of the universe appeared immediately. It was the first time she’d looked at it since they painted the room, and she admired every star, trying to see which ones she knew the names of and which ones she didn’t. She tried to locate the planets they’d visited, and she began to walk around with her hand on her belly. 

“Your Daddy is better at this than me,” she began, “But...let’s see what I can tell you.” 

She moved to the middle of the room, and she pointed above her head. 

“That is called...the Prime Star,” she said. “It’s located in the galaxy your Daddy is from. It’s called Kasterborous, and I haven’t spent very much time there, but I know that star is quite powerful. Don’t tell him this, but I read about it in a book in the secret section of the library. I’m sure he’ll show you one day.” 

She continued to explain a few more stars, and after a few minutes the Doctor walked back in, about to ask her again what she wanted for lunch as he pulled his henley over his head, freshly showered, but he stopped when he realized what she was doing. 

He watched. 

“Over here,” she continued, “If we do this…”

She raised her hand above her head and swiped it across the air, tilting the view of the projection to reveal another bit of the stars, and he just looked down at his feet, somehow not surprised at all that she knew how to do that. 

“This is called the Milky Way Galaxy, and it’s where Mummy is from. That’s the sun, and those are all the planets. There’s Mercury, Venus, Earth, that’s where we’ll take you the most, Mars, that’s where your Grandmother is probably going to say you’re from when she’s teasing your Daddy, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neputne, and way over there is Pluto. Poor thing was a planet when Mummy was your age, but some daft scientists decided it’s more of a dwarf planet,” she explained. 

She was smiling, and went to show her an asteroid belt, but when she turned she saw the Doctor in the doorway, staring at her with his hands in his pockets, and she bit her lip. “How much of that did you hear?” 

“Everything about where her Mummy is from,” he said, his voice thick. She laughed. 

“Good,” she said. “I may have also mentioned the secret section in the library.” 

His favorite smile was on her face and he just looked at her, taking a deep breath, “You don’t have to stop. What else?” 

“You should go,” she said, moving to nudge him a little with her foot. He sniffed. 

“Maybe later,” he said. “I...kinda want to see her face when I do that.” 

Something about those words knocked the wind out of her in all the best ways, and she just smiled at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He shook his head in awe as he watched the projection bounce off of her cheeks, and she reached behind him to flip the light switch back on, both looking up as the galaxies disappeared. 

“I love you,” he said and she just smiled at him. 

“I love you, too. And before you ask, fish and chips,” she said, and he laughed, taking her hand. 

“Allons-y,” he murmured, and they ventured to the galley, neither wanting to run the risk of getting strapped to a bomb again. As the TARDIS got their food ready Rose saw her mobile phone sitting on the counter, and she decided to grab it and take a picture of the crib she could send her mother, but her brow furrowed as she looked at the screen. 

“What’s wrong?” he asked, setting the plates on the table. 

“Martha,” Rose said, and he immediately perked up. “She rang me three times.” 

She listened to her voicemail as she moved to sit across from him, and she began to eat her chips. All she could hear was static, and she moved to the next voicemail, but it was the same as the first and she handed the phone to the Doctor so he could listen as she ate quickly, trying to scarf it all down so they could go help. 

“That’s weird,” he said. “Maybe text her?” 

Rose’s tongue was in the corner of her mouth as she set her fork down and checked her messages, and she just shook her head. “She already did. Says ‘SOS’.” 

The Doctor clenched his jaw and shoved a bite into his mouth, too. Rose quickly texted her back. 

_Where are you?_

She stared at the screen, tapping her foot, and her stomach was twisting a little. 

She forgot about her food, and the Doctor squeezed her hand, reminding her to keep eating as they waited for Martha to respond, but after two minutes of nothing the Doctor grabbed the phone and ran to the console, playing around with wires and trying to hook it up to the monitor. Rose took another bite and followed him, watching over his shoulder as he calibrated and stared at both screens. 

“Ha!” he said victoriously. “I tracked the geocode of the phone calls. She’s...in Canada.” 

“What?” Rose asked, tilting the screen up to her a little bit. 

He clenched his jaw as he repeated his work just in case it was wrong, but the code gave him the same result and he just ran his hand over his face, punching the coordinates into the TARDIS. 

The word destiny rang in the back of his mind. 

“She’s in Victoria, British Columbia…” he said, and he just sighed. “It’s named after the Queen.” 

Rose just stared at him with wide eyes and he looked at her, opening his mouth to speak but then closing it, letting out a breath instead. 

“Did you finish your food?” he asked as he pulled the lever and she smirked. 

“Did you?” she countered, and he smirked. 

“Come on, quick,” he said, and they raced back to the galley, both competing for a moment to see who could eat faster, and before they knew it they were walking out the TARDIS doors with Rose’s phone in her hand in to one of the most beautiful towns she’d ever seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two more song recs if you're interested! 
> 
> The sex scene was inspired by the song "Take Me to Church" by Hozier. Doesn't _quite_ fit their relationship in these stories, but its still a great song :)
> 
> "I'll Keep You Safe" by Sleeping At Last. Just...damn. How much does this man love this woman? That song fits both of their POVs in this universe in so many ways. I love it. It's a beautiful.


	2. Queens and Friends

The Doctor took her hand as they walked forward, greeted by rows and rows of ornate and colorful flowers all along a waterfront. Ships were docked off to the side, their sails blowing in the light breeze. 

“Ah! Brilliant, we’re at the Inner Harbor,” the Doctor said, looking out at the water. Rose wasn’t paying attention, and before he could begin to explain any further, she was immediately on her phone trying to reach Martha again. It was now going straight to voicemail. 

“Think her phone died,” Rose muttered. She glanced up, watching bicyclists zip past them on the sidewalk and tourists take pictures near the flowers, and she sighed. “Everything looks... quiet.” 

“Doesn’t it always?” he asked. 

“No,” she replied, laughing a little at him as he just smiled, but the moment was short lived, both wanting to find their friend. 

“Instincts?” he said seriously, and she bit her lip, looking around. 

“What’s that place?” she asked, pointing to a grand building across the main street that almost looked like a castle, and the Doctor cleared his throat. 

“Parliament,” he said. She sighed. 

“Let’s start there, I guess,” she said, and they held hands as they walked toward the building. 

It was a fairly cool day outside, with lots of clouds in the sky, and the building was the center of everyone’s attention as they walked by. It was stone, with a large fountain sitting before it, and lawns bigger than the size of her mother’s entire house rested on either side of a cement path. The building itself was stone, with green domes resting atop numerous pillars, the largest one in the middle. They watched everyone mill about around it, many in suits, and Rose stopped walking, taking a deep breath and trying to phone Martha again. 

Voicemail. 

“Breathe,” he said. “Focus, what do your instincts say?” 

“She’s in trouble,” Rose muttered, and the Doctor pulled her into a hug. 

“What else?” he said, trying to ignore the dread he was feeling, and Rose closed her eyes. 

“Um...go inside,” she said. “I dunno.” 

“Rose, look at me,” he said carefully. “It’s okay. She’ll be okay. We’re clever, and so is she.” 

Rose just nodded as he took her hand again and they walked up a flight of stone stairs until they reached the interior of the building, and they deducted quickly. 

Nothing was pulling at her instincts, and no one looked at them. They all seemed to have important things to do or places to be, and Rose just kept walking, ignoring everything and everyone until they reached another set of stairs, and with a quick glance over her shoulder she pulled the Doctor with her up the second floor. 

Something told her immediately they weren’t supposed to be up there, but that made her want to stay, and she took a moment to fix her hair that had started to fall out of its bun again just in case anyone saw them. The Doctor got psychic paper ready too, though at the moment they appeared to be alone. They had their sonic screwdrivers out, neither speaking, when a large window against the front of the building caught her eye. She walked over to it, wondering if the height might make it easier to see more of the city and try to deduct where Martha might be. 

“It’s gorgeous,” she said, sort of wishing it wasn’t as she looked at the dock. In the distance, she could also see colorful gardens, museums, and ferries all dazzling under the sun, and the Doctor just nodded. 

“Yeah,” he said, sniffing and looking around as well. They stayed there for a few minutes, both beginning to feel agitated, and the Doctor squeezed her hand, ready to turn around. 

Just as they did, Rose suddenly noticed a figure on a pedestal that made her heart skip a beat. 

“Queen Victoria,” she said. 

“What?” he asked, trying to see where she was looking. 

“A statue, over there. I think it’s of her,” she murmured, and he followed her gaze, noticing it as well. 

“Let’s go,” he said. 

“Doctor, Martha -” she said, and he just shook his head, tugging on her hand and leading her back down to the stairs. 

“Destiny, Rose. Why the hell is she here unless she’s somehow, probably unknowingly, of course, leading us to something we’re supposed to find?” he said urgently, and she just looked at him. 

“Let me just try to ring her again,” she said, punching in the number, but it still went to voicemail. “Oh, come on...”

There was a defeat in her voice that broke his hearts, and his jaw clenched, realizing he was being selfish. 

“You’re right. I’m sorry, we’ll find her,” he whispered. Rose closed her eyes and he cupped a hand to her cheek. “C’mon. It's me and you. We will find her. And after we do, we’ll go look at the statue. When she’s safe. I promise.” 

Rose pulled him into a hug. 

“Okay,” she whispered. “I’m going to try Donna.” 

The Doctor nodded and pulled away, leading both of them away from the offices and back toward the front lawns. The phone rang twice before Donna answered, laughing at something someone just said. 

_“Rose!”_ she said, her voice delighted. _“Hello! Are you back? I’m at -”_

“Donna, hi. Sorry, love you, I just...I don’t have time. Listen, do you know where Martha is?” she asked. 

The panic in her voice was alarming, and when Donna spoke next, her tone was one Rose didn’t hear very often. It was very serious, and very alert. 

_“No, at work probably, why?”_ she asked, and Rose could hear her stepping away from the crowded room she was in. _“What’s wrong?”_

“Its...She rang me a few times and sent me a text. We think she’s in trouble. We were in the Vortex and we traced her location to Canada,” Rose said her tongue clicking against her teeth. 

_“Last time I saw her was at the dinner party a couple weeks ago,”_ she said. 

“Can you try phoning her? Maybe my mobile is acting weird. Too much Vortex energy or something,” Rose said, even though in her gut she knew the answer. The Doctor was watching, still standing out by the lawns, and Rose waited as Donna quickly hung up, only to call back again a minute later. 

_“She didn’t answer,”_ she said. _“I’ll go to her flat. She gave me a key, I’ll see what I can find.”_

“Thank you,” Rose said. 

“Nothing?” the Doctor asked as Rose hung up, and she just shook her head. 

“She’s going to check her flat,” she whispered. “I just don’t know why she would be here….” 

“Let’s just keep walking. Start asking people if they’ve seen her,” the Doctor said. “Your mobile has a camera, yeah? You have pictures together?” 

Rose sighed, already knowing she had lots, the most recent one from that dinner party Donna just mentioned, and she nodded. 

“Yeah,” Rose said, and the Doctor just kissed her temple, holding her hand as they began to walk around. 

They showed the pictures to random strangers, pointing out Martha, but everyone just shook their heads and said they didn’t know her. They walked up and down the dock, around a park with totem poles that Rose would definitely have lots of questions about in any other situation, before they made their way over to the next exquisite building just up the street from Parliament, which Rose quickly realized was some sort of luxury hotel. 

“I need the loo,” she muttered, feeling a pang of guilt for being irritated with her body at a time like this when it was entirely out of her control, but she was worried and her hormones were unpredictable. 

“Okay,” he said, and they walked toward it, still asking people they passed about Martha and still being told no, and they walked through the doors. 

The “Hotel Fairmont Empress,” as it was called, truly felt like it belonged to royalty. The outside alone was breathtaking and reminded them of some of the brilliant estates they had been to in the past, especially near the English countryside, but the inside was...well…

Queen Victoria would have approved. 

The entire hotel overlooked the dock, which meant the views were exquisite. Rose could smell some delicious food coming from the restaurant on the lobby floor, and if she wasn’t so worried she knew she would insist on stopping and trying a little bit of everything. The pregnancy brain in her wanted to, but she ignored it as she darted toward the loo. 

The Doctor waited for her, looking around at the grand staircase, plated in gold. He noticed the staff were dressed similarly to how Mr. Townes was that day in 1901, and he clenched his jaw, all of his wheels turning and telling him this trip was about so much more than just finding Martha, but he took a deep breath and stopped himself before he went down a rabbit hole of conjecture, aware that finding their friend was their top priority. 

He decided to take a gamble and approached the check in desk, smiling at a kind man in a vest and bowtie. “Hello.”

“Ah, good day, sir,” he said, and the Doctor just nodded. 

“My wife and I are meeting a friend here, but...well, we aren’t sure where she might be and she’s not answering her phone,” he said. 

“Indeed, sir?” the man asked, and the Doctor just sniffed. 

“I was wondering...have you seen this woman walking around at all? Her name is Martha. Martha Jones,” he added, holding up the picture on Rose’s phone. The man just stared at it. 

“I have seen her, sir,” he said. 

“You have?” the Doctor asked, a little surprised, and he tucked the phone into his suit. “Where?” 

“Oh, I can’t divulge information about our guests, sir,” he said. 

“She’s staying here?” the Doctor asked, his hearts pounding. The man just smiled. 

“I believe your wife is approaching, sir,” he hummed, and the Doctor turned to see Rose walk up next to him. The Doctor just looked at her and grabbed her hand, pulling his psychic paper out and flashing it to the man, unsure of what it said. 

“I need to know what room she is staying in,” he said. “She asked us to come and we can’t get a hold of her. Please.” 

“I would just wait for your friend to respond, sir,” the man said. “Hotel policy, I do apologize.” 

The Doctor sniffed, returning his paper to his pocket, but Rose acted quickly as he continued to chat with the man, trying to keep everything as pleasant as possible. She pulled out her sonic screwdriver and discreetly aimed it at his computer, causing it to spark a little. 

The Doctor smirked at her. 

“Oh, shit. Help, shit shit shit!” the man called, his work persona shattered, and another man ran over, helping him put out the sparks. More employees began to panic, and the Doctor clenched his jaw as he and Rose snuck behind the counter, everyone too distracted by the flames to notice, and he found a ledger, opening it to check-ins from the last two days. 

“Room 418,” he whispered. 

They ran. 

They soniced the lifts to move faster and raced down the hall of the fourth floor, not able to appreciate the architecture or furniture or plush carpets, and in any other instance, the Doctor might have realized what a romantic getaway this place could be for them one day, but instead he held Rose’s hand as they bolted to the room, and she used her sonic on the handle, pushing it open quickly. 

“Martha?!” she cried, and they stood in the doorway for a moment, taking in the sight before them. 

If they didn’t know better, they’d say Martha may have had a lot of sex the night before. 

Rose’s brow creased, shutting the door behind her, and she and the Doctor looked at the ground, where a cocktail dress and bra were thrown about with abandon. The air even smelled a little of sex, and Rose began to nibble on her lip, peering into the bathroom to see two toothbrushes and two bags of toiletries. She gently pushed the door open and examined some of the items. 

“Beard oil,” she said, locking eyes with the Doctor for a moment. 

He made his way further into the room, which was one of the most lavish hotel suites he’d ever been in. He smirked a little at thought, remembering he and Rose had stayed in some pretty spectacular places in the past, and this room did remind him a little of Atlantis…

There was a turquoise and gold theme to the room. The carpet, he could tell, was soft and plush and the bed was ornate, pressed against the wall behind him. He saw wine glasses on a coffee table and Rose ran out of the bathroom, her face contorted in a way that told him she saw something she wished she hadn’t. 

“What?” he asked. 

“Condom,” she said. “Found three in the bin.” 

“Three?” the Doctor said, a little impressed, and Rose just bit her lip. “Good for Martha.” 

“I swear to God if whoever she is with is hurting her…” Rose said, her hand clenching into a fist. The Doctor’s face hardened at that thought, and they both continued to look around carefully for any other clues. 

“Well, she’s not here…” he continued, avoiding the bed at all costs. 

Rose rubbed her lips together in thought as he pulled some things off the shelf, unsure what exactly he was looking for, and she decided to approach the bed, refusing to touch the sheets, but she looked at the nightstand, her hand on her belly. 

She saw a watch on the table she recognized, and her jaw dropped open. “Oh, my God..” 

“What?” the Doctor asked, setting down pillows from the sofa he had checked behind. 

“Mickey,” she said, and the Doctor just stared at her. 

“What about him?” he asked, and Rose pointed to the watch. 

“Mum got him that for Christmas last year. Remember?” she whispered, and the Doctor walked over to her, taking it. 

“Lots of people have watches, Rose,” he said, and she just gave him a look. “What?” 

“She’s sleeping with Mickey!” she said, hitting his arm, and the Doctor stared at her, ignoring the small twist of his stomach. 

“Does that bother you?” he asked carefully, and Rose smiled. 

“Of course not!” she exclaimed, “I think...Just...Oh, my God!” 

The Doctor sniffed and set the watch down, looking out the window at the view of the water. 

“You’re sure?” he asked quietly, and Rose just rolled her eyes. 

“What year is this? 2005?” she asked, and he just looked at her. 

“I’m just saying, Rose, he’s...you can be over someone and still not want your best friend -” he began, and she just laughed. 

“I think it’s great,” she said. “And I think you’re getting worked up over nothing.” 

“I’m not getting worked up,” he scoffed, and she just gave him a look. 

“Okay,” she said, brushing his flippancy off. “Well, at least we know he isn’t hurting her, they -” 

“Wait, stop, why do you think I’m getting worked up?” he asked, and she just sighed. 

“Can we focus on finding them, maybe?” she said, and the Doctor just looked back out the window. “I... Blimey, guess I’ll try calling Mickey.” 

He wasn’t sure why he was so bothered, and he stayed quiet as Rose dialed, but Mickey’s phone appeared to go to voicemail too. She muttered something under her breath and she moved to the couch, sitting down for a moment as she tried to figure out what to do next. 

“I think they’re out of range…” she whispered. “No service, that sort of thing. Mickey is too much of a technofile not to charge his phone.” 

The Doctor sniffed and moved to sit next to her, but they both noticed a bottle of lube on the side table and they immediately jumped up and made a face. 

“Blehhhck,” the Doctor said, shuddering, and Rose burst into laughter. 

“It’s just sex,” she said with a small smile, and he grimaced.

“If it's not you and me I don’t want to know about it,” he said honestly, and she just sighed. “And I mean, really, why come all the way to Canada for a…” 

“I think the reason you’re asking is exactly the reason they did it,” she murmured. 

“What do you mean?” he asked, and she just smiled at him like he was a dense idiot, which only made his brow crease more. 

“Doctor, they’re keeping it a secret,” she said. “Which tells me the fact that Martha risked exposing their relationship means something really bad happened...” 

He just clenched his jaw and ran his hand through his hair. “Right.” 

“Where can they go around here that would take them out of range?” she asked. He just shrugged. 

“Hiking?” he offered. “There’s a few trails further toward the mountains.” 

“I can picture them hiking,” she said, deducting. The Doctor just watched as she moved to their suitcases, ignoring the alarm in her head that said she was invading their privacy as she unzipped each compartment, searching for anything that might help. She blushed a little when she saw the skimpy lingerie Martha had packed and the Doctor found a guidebook, trying to figure out which trail they might have gone too. 

“I mean, everything left in here is definitely meant for the bedroom,” she continued. “And their trainers are gone. Martha wouldn’t travel anywhere without trainers, not after spending so much time with us.” 

“Mickey, too. He’s Torchwood. They both know you can stumble across things at any time,” he muttered, and he took a deep breath. “Why are they keeping it a secret?!” 

He sounded completely confused, and she just smirked. “Why did we wait a month to tell Mum we got married?” 

“That’s different,” he said. “That was your mother. I’m alien. We weren’t even...together when she saw us last. This is…” 

“We weren’t ready, Doctor,” Rose said softly. “We wanted to enjoy our little bubble before it got...messy.” 

He stared at her, and she zipped up the suitcase, moving to wrap her arms around his neck. She kissed him, and he responded by placing his hands on her waist, kissing her back, until she pulled away and smiled at him. 

“You really don’t care that Martha is sleeping with your ex?” he asked. 

“Am I supposed to?” she said, amused. He just sighed. 

“I dunno, Rose, I just...humans, I thought...you have feelings usually, about that sort of thing. In movies or...It’s Mickey, and I -” he started to say, feeling a little stupid this was bothering him so much when he already knew the answer, and she just rolled her eyes. 

“Doctor, I really don’t care Martha, my friend, is sleeping with my other _friend._ I mean, I do, because I think it’s amazing and they’re great for each other and I am thrilled, but I don’t care about it for the reasons you seem to think I do,” she assured him. “You don’t need to be...I dunno, jealous or -” 

“I’m not jealous,” he said. “It’s just...it’s weird, Rose. I...” 

He clenched his jaw and she just rubbed her hand on his cheek. 

“Me and Mickey? That was all so long ago, it doesn’t matter. He ran away to a parallel universe for six years and I happen to be very happily married. And pregnant.” 

“Yeah?” he asked, and she just smiled. 

“Yes. He’s a doctor,” she said, poking his ribs, and he smirked. 

“Is he?” he whispered, and she nodded. 

“Mhm. He’s rather brilliant, in fact. He knows it though, so don’t go around telling him. He’s usually in a suit...Tall...Great hair, some...some really great hair,” she flirted and he smiled at her. 

“Stroking my ego, Rose Tyler?” he hummed, and she just bit her lip. 

“Maybe,” she said softly. “Is it working?” 

He smiled seductively at her, until they both realized they were in a room Martha and Mickey clearly got a little daring in and they stopped, making the exact same disgruntled face at each other before they broke into laughter instead, and he looked back at the guidebook. 

“They had to have gone somewhere,” he muttered, and she took the book from him, flipping through the pages. 

“I don’t even know how we’d begin to find them even if we did pick the right place,” she whispered, her worry starting to flood through her again, and he clenched his jaw. 

“We will,” he said. “We’re too good. And they’re too clever.”

They looked at each other for a moment, and Rose flipped the page, noticing the corner was dogeared, and her instincts woke up instantly. She smiled. 

“Look,” she said, showing him, and he let out a breath. “Mickey used to do that in school.” 

“Let’s go, see what we find,” he said, squeezing her hand, and they left the room behind as they bolted out the door to save their friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Literally been trying to get them together since the story "Perfectly Imperfect" and I just haven't been able to logically tie it into the plot and this was NOT planned and I'm so happy! Hope you all liked it too, still a bit more for this story :)


	3. Can You Save Him

The moment the TARDIS parked itself in the forest, he ran a scan for alien tech. 

His eyes lingered with hers as he twisted the knob, both smirking and waited for the other to say something about how very ‘Spock’ it was, but they were both feeling a little too preoccupied to be as witty as they normally were. 

They had both changed clothes in case they needed to hike, and Rose was wearing a long sleeve gray shirt that once again clung to every curve, and somewhere in the back of the Doctor’s mind he noticed. He was wearing track pants and a blue athletic shirt he was sure Martha would probably make fun of him for, but he couldn’t possibly care about that at the moment. 

He held the scanner up, watching. 

Since they had no idea what to expect, Rose was currently checking back in with Donna as she stuffed food and water into a bag, not wanting to be distracted by basic needs at any point, and she hung up the phone quickly. 

“Donna didn’t find anything,” she said. “I told her we were getting ready to search and I’d text when we find her.” 

“Good,” the Doctor mumbled, staring at his detector, waiting anxiously for it to ‘ding’. 

It did that when there was...stuff. 

They were both feeling a lot of things, and the Doctor was growing impatient, about ready to just run out there and explore until they discovered something the longer the scanner took to do its job.

He hit the side of it and groaned, and Rose was already a step ahead of him, grabbing the food and crossing to the door. He was right behind her, taking the scanner with him as they stepped into the wilderness, where dried pine needles crunched beneath their feet. 

“Can I see the rucksack?” he asked, quite focused still on the device in his hand. Rose nodded as she looked around and passed it to him, and she just stared at him when he just took the pack and slipped it onto his shoulders. “You’re already carrying something extra, love.” 

For a moment, they smiled at each other, before she kissed his shoulder. 

“MARTHA!” 

Her voice reverberated in the trees, spooking some birds that had been perched on branches, and they watched them fly away. 

Much to both of their relief, the detector finally made a sound, and the Doctor grinned. 

“HA!” he said. “This way.” 

They moved quickly through the forest, Rose making sure not to slip as they weaved in and out of bushes and trees and over hills, the terrain a little slippery from fallen leaves. She was trusting her Instincts, which so far seemed to be in line with the scanner in her husband’s hand, and for a moment she felt her heart skip a beat when she thought her phone rang. 

It did not. 

She sighed and they continued on, and there was a wheezing sound coming from the scanner as it continued to try and figure out where to go, and the Doctor looked at Rose. 

“What do we even say?” he asked. 

“Nothing,” Rose said, biting her lip. “I’m sure it’ll come up.” 

“The shagging or the lying? Or the lying about the shagging or -” he began to say, and she just rolled her eyes. 

“They weren’t lying,” she said softly, looking around the woods a bit more. “Happy bubble.” 

He didn’t say anything, and he looked down at the ground, making sure they were still following some sort of beaten path, when the scanner began to beep, and he stopped moving. 

“Wait,” he said carefully, holding it up in the air. “Instincts?” 

“Go left,” she said, and they both moved that way, when Rose suddenly tripped and fell, and he dropped the scanner instantly. 

“Are you alright?” he asked, quickly helping her stand back up. She nodded, brushing dirt and leaves off of her yoga pants and he already had his sonic screwdriver out, causing her to sigh. 

“I’m fine, you don’t need to do that,” she assured him, but he did it anyway. 

Her stomach fluttered for a moment, as if their daughter knew her Daddy needed a sign that she was okay, too, and she nudged her mind so he could feel. He smiled widely. 

“I love you,” he said. 

“I love you, too,” she said, and she glanced down to see what made her fall. She expected to see some sort of root or branch, but as she kicked away the dried pine needles, she found herself staring at a footprint deep in the ground, with four long toes and talons, about three feet tall and two feet wide. 

“Check over there,” Rose instructed, and the Doctor swept the ground with his foot, revealing another print. 

They worked quickly, uncovering two more, and the Doctor felt his stomach flip. 

“They’re going this way,” he said seriously, picking up his scanner and shoving it into the rucksack so he could grab her hand. “Be careful, please?” 

“Promise,” she said. “We have to hurry.” 

They used their sonics to help them find more footprints, and they continued up a rather tall hill that began to make their muscles feel tight as they properly hiked, and Rose had to stop for a moment to drink water. 

He took some as well, climbing to the top of the hill between a cluster of trees, and he just stared at the view, which was absolutely _breathtaking._

A creek sat beneath them with moss covered rocks along the entire embankment. Willow trees hovered above it, and he saw birds sitting on the branches, a soft song being sung in harmonies by every single one. The sun was high in the sky, creating a golden wash over all of it, and Rose joined him, both allowing themselves one second to bask in the beauty before they tried to look for more footprints, when suddenly a growling sound could be heard in the distance. 

They both glanced up instantly, turning in the direction it came from, and Rose grabbed his hand, acting on pure adrenaline as she tried to lead him down the hill on the other side. The terrain was steep and slippery and covered in sharp rocks, and he felt a panic brewing. 

“Rose, go slowly,” he said, but she wasn’t listening, practically running down toward the creek, and he grabbed her and pulled her back. “Rose!” 

“Doctor, I’m not -” she started to snap. 

“Made of glass, I know,” he said. “And I know you can heal yourself but we don’t know if you can heal Alice and I would rather not have to find out. Okay? I’m already worried about Martha and Mickey. I can’t handle that.” 

She looked at him, and he pleaded with his eyes. She nodded. 

“Okay, I’m sorry,” she said. “You go ahead then, I’ll move slowly.” 

“Stop, I’m not leaving you,” he said, and Rose suddenly felt irritated even though she knew she shouldn’t. 

Hormones. 

“Which way do you want to do this, then? We have to hurry, so one of us needs to run and we need to do it now,” she said, and he sighed. 

“Let’s both go and just be careful. Please?” he said slowly, trying not to make her more upset, and she clamped her hand into his as they continued down the hill, noticing a few more footsteps as they eventually reached the creek, and the air suddenly smelled the way cement does when it rains, and they both knew it was the water against the rocks. “I’m sorry.” 

“Don’t...” she said. “This way.” 

They heard the growl again, a little closer than before, and they moved as swiftly as Rose felt they could without worrying her husband until they reached a cave tucked into the side of a mountain overlooking the water. She turned to him. 

“They’re in there,” she whispered. “Have a feeling.” 

Their eyes danced, and they heard the growl again, clearly coming from inside, and the Doctor closed his eyes, desperately wanting to ask her to wait where she was. 

“Not a chance, come on. I’ll be careful,” she said urgently, grabbing his hand as they ran. 

“Rose, we can’t just run in,” he said, pulling her back against the rock just before the entrance. 

“Got a better plan?” she asked, her eyebrow raised, and he sighed. 

“Can we not fight, please?” he whispered, and she just rolled her eyes. 

“We’re not fighting, we’re trying to save our friends and disagreeing about what to do, apparently,” she told him. “Instincts, Doctor. I’m not going to do anything that might harm me or the baby. I swear. And we don’t have time to go back and forth about it.” 

“Fine,” he said. “After you.” 

She bit her lip, aware that tensions were high at the moment and she also knew stress triggered her hormones and neither meant to be so short with each other, but she pushed it all aside as she grabbed his hand and led him into the cave. 

Both of their sonics were out in front of them, lighting the path, and the growl was heard again, much louder than before. It practically shook the walls, and the Doctor ran his finger along them, his face very calculated. “It’s...calcified.” 

“What’s that mean?” she asked. 

“Means it’s bone…” he muttered, and they both stopped walking to look at each other. “Rose…” 

“Shhh, they’re both fine,” she said, not interested in whatever theory he was about to spew. He pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her tightly. She hugged him back, pressing her head into his shoulder, and he pulled away, letting hazel galaxies swim in chocolate. 

“Will you let me go first?” he whispered, and she nodded. 

He squeezed her hand gratefully, walking down the path toward the growl, and Rose began to look at the walls, realizing the bone was actually lots of different bones that had fused together somehow over time, possibly by weather. It appeared to be mostly animals, and it occurred to Rose whatever this creature was probably responsible for them… 

She shook that thought out of her head, still holding the Doctor’s hand, and they began to hear the faint dripping sound of water falling above their heads, and Rose felt a drop land on her arm. She ignored it, and they heard the growl again, this time knocking them back a little. 

The Doctor shared a glance with her as they turned a corner into the largest part of the cave, and they saw a creature, tall and burly and covered in fur, trapped behind a very large stone. 

It looked like, though he was sure there was a better name for it, Sasquatch.

“Oh, brilliant,” the Doctor whispered, temporarily in awe, and Rose just hit his arm. 

“Rose?!” she heard a voice say behind her, and she turned instantly, seeing Martha hiding behind more stones. 

“Oh, my God,” Rose whispered, immediately hugging her, and Martha squeezed her tightly, closing her eyes. 

“Oh, I’m so glad you got my message,” she said, tears beginning to spill over. The Doctor watched them for a moment, but he realized Mickey wasn’t anywhere in sight, and he clenched his jaw. 

“Are you alright?” he asked quietly, and Martha just looked at him, a little unsure how to answer him. 

She started to cry harder, and he pulled her into a hug next. 

“Can I scan you? Are you hurt?” he murmured, and she shook her head. 

“No, not me,” she said, her voice breaking just a little. “I...Here.” 

She stepped aside, revealing an unconscious Mickey, who had a head wound that was making blood pour down his face. Martha had clearly been working hard to keep him alive, and Rose fell to her knees, cupping his cheeks in her hands. 

“What happened?!” Rose asked, speaking a little louder than she meant to, and the beast behind the stone growled again. 

“Please tell me you can you heal him?” Martha asked desperately, and both women looked at each other, unspoken words lingering in the air. Rose wasn’t sure she was breathing as she let her energy seep into his wound, and the Doctor wrapped his arm around Martha, trying to comfort her as best he could.

Mickey gasped, his arms flailing a little from the pain, and Rose covered his mouth with her hand so he didn’t completely alarm whatever creature it was they would have to deal with. 

“Shhhhh, you’re fine. Mickey, you’re fine,” she said, “Shut up, yeah? Stop making noise, you’re okay. I promise.” 

“Martha?” he croaked, confused and wincing as the heat began to finally dissipate. “Rose?! Where’s Martha?” 

“I’m here,” she said, and Rose stepped back, biting her lip and looking at the Doctor. 

For the first time in her life, she wasn’t the first woman Mickey asked about. 

That thought made her happy in ways she didn’t realize it would. 

The Doctor looked back over at the beast, who was still growling, and he noticed it’s eye sockets were bleeding. 

“Did you blind it?” he asked, impressed, and Mickey just nodded, his arms currently wrapped tightly around Martha in a desperate embrace, and Rose saw her friend’s shoulders hunch as he held her. 

“Hey, hey, none of that. I’m okay, yeah?” he whispered so softly Rose almost didn’t hear, and she felt her throat tighten, realizing whatever this was between them was more than just a _shag._ There was a look in his eye she recognized, but it was deeper and was more tender than she remembered from when he looked at her that way, and if she didn’t know better, she’d say Mickey Smith might just be in love. 

“I thought I lost you,” Martha whispered, and the words resonated in both the Doctor and Rose’s chests, making them squeeze each other’s hands and look away for a moment, remembering all the times they’d said them to each other. 

Mickey just shook his head, a thousand questions formulating in his mind, but before they could really unpack what was going on, the beast growled again, and Martha helped Mickey stand up, all four of them looking at the creature. 

“Thirty seconds, what happened?” the Doctor asked. 

That was the moment, Rose could tell, where it hit both Mickey and Martha that Rose and the Doctor weren’t _surprised_ to see them together. They shared a quick glance, and Martha took a deep breath. 

“We were hiking,” Martha said, choosing not to divulge their relationship. She was pretty sure they somehow already knew. “Came across this path that looked like it led to a really lovely creek, so we followed it.” 

“This thing was there, and before we could run away, it charged at us,” Mickey added. “We ran, but it grabbed me and led me here.” 

“I followed, and I managed to blind it with a slingshot I made out of a hair tie and a branch. I used a sharp bone I found by the entrance,” she whispered. The Doctor stared at her. 

“Brilliant,” he told her earnestly, and Martha just sighed. 

“Except it freaked out and slammed itself into the wall,” she said, her voice starting to quiver. “That’s when I called you, Rose. I didn’t know what else to do…” 

“I’m so sorry I didn’t answer,” she said, guilt flooding through her, but Martha just shook her head. 

“No, I...” she said. 

“What else happened?” the Doctor asked, and the creature growled again, and they all stood back when it began to try to wiggle out of the stone.

“It managed to trap itself behind that as it fell backwards,” she told them, “Knocked it down from above...And…” 

She looked at Mickey, who just rubbed a hand on her arm. 

“It dropped me,” Mickey said. “Next thing I remember was you two showing up. Thank you, by the way.”

He smiled a little at Rose, who didn’t have time to say anything before Martha finished filling them in. 

“I dragged him off to the side and tried to stop the bleeding,” she said.

“Well done, Dr. Jones,” the Doctor said with a smile, and she just wiped her eyes, realizing new tears had spilled over. 

The creature growled, and then screamed, and all four of them covered their ears, the sound painful and much too loud, and the Doctor clenched his jaw, trying to figure out what to do. 

“We could leave…” he muttered, and Rose just looked at him. 

“Who's to say that thing won’t go back out there and do something like this again?” she asked seriously, and the Doctor looked at Martha and Mickey. 

“How fast can it run?” he asked. 

“Well, it’s Bigfoot, so it more...stomps than runs,” Mickey said, and Rose stared at him. The Doctor’s face just broke out into a grin. 

“HA! Mickey the Not-So-Idiot,” he teased with a wink, and Mickey just rolled his eyes. “Though, well, technically, his name would be Sasquatch, and -” 

“Doctor,” Rose said, and he smiled at her, looking back at the beast. 

“It’s mutated, most likely,” the Doctor pondered, watching the way the beast was wriggling. “Some sort of animal that got into something it shouldn’t have.” 

“What are you saying?” Martha asked.

“Well, depending on what it was I might be able to counteract it,” he pondered, but before they could go down that path any further it finally slipped out of its stone and it began to feel around frantically, terrified that it couldn’t see. 

It began to move toward them. 

“GO!” Mickey shouted, and he realized his face was covered in blood. He made a sound of disgust as he tried to wipe it off with his sleeve, but Martha grabbed his hand and they began to go back in the direction Rose and the Doctor came. 

The Doctor moved to grab Rose, who thought about using her Vortex energy to trap the creature in the cave, but he already had her hand in his and was pulling her with him right after Martha and Mickey, and Rose looked back. 

It still couldn’t see, and she realized it was using its sense of smell to try and follow them, and she deducted quickly. 

“What do you need to do to try and change it back?” she asked. 

“I don’t know that I can,” he admitted, “Need a blood sample first.” 

“HURRY UP!” Mickey shouted, and Rose looked over at him. 

“OI! WATCH IT! 5 MONTHS PREGNANT!” she shouted, and Martha started scolding Mickey as they all reached the entrance to the cave. 

Rose let her instincts lead, and the second they were all safe she shot a beam of light at three tall trees and snapped the trunks, watching them fall and block the entrance to the cave entirely. 

The beast was trapped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise they will get to talk about Martha & Mickey haha


	4. By the Moonlight

Mickey stared at her, and the Doctor clenched his jaw. Martha was catching her breath. 

“It’s not going to follow us to the TARDIS easily. It can’t see anything,” Rose said. “Better we keep it in a place we know we can get to it.” 

“Don’t think I’ll ever get used to you doing that,” Mickey said with a faint smile, and Rose just looked at him. 

“Are you alright?” she asked, her heart beating against her chest. He nodded. 

Martha and the Doctor watched as Rose hugged him, relief flooding through her like a tidal wave, and he let out a breath before he pulled away, looking carefully between her and the Doctor. “So how long have you known, then?” 

“Known what?” the Doctor asked, and Mickey just gave him a look. 

“You weren’t shocked at all to see both of us,” he said. “C’mon.” 

“Not long,” Rose said with a smile, and she looked at Martha, who was rocking a little on her heels. “We found your hotel room when we were trying to figure out where you were.” 

Both of their faces looked mortified, and Rose burst out laughing. 

“We should get to the ship,” the Doctor said, and he grabbed Rose’s hand as they all began to walk, no one speaking for a few minutes, not knowing quite knowing where to begin. 

“You don’t have to tell us anything,” Rose said eventually. “But just know I think it’s great. Whatever it is.” 

Mickey looked at her, and Martha was playing with her earring. She reached over and squeezed Rose’s hand, who just smiled at her, and the Doctor continued to look ahead, not sure how to contribute. He was happy for them, he was, but he wasn’t good at this kind of thing unless it was with Rose, and even then he...

He decided to stay quiet. 

“How’d you find us?” Mickey asked instead of opening up that conversation completely, and the Doctor cleared his throat. 

“Tracked the geocode in Martha’s text message,” he said. “Knew the day and time from the calls. Then just...good ol’ fashioned investigating. And this!”

He pulled his hand out of Rose’s for a bit to pull his scanner out of the rucksack, and Martha started to laugh. 

“Looks like you made that out of scraps,” she said. He just feigned offense and gave her a look. 

“I’ll have you know, Martha Jones, it’s my Timey-Wimey detector and it’s very helpful,” he said, and she smirked at him. “It goes ‘ding’ when there’s stuff, but not only that! It tells me where stuff is, in way, well, sort of, and…” 

Rose rolled her eyes. 

“What are you wearing?” she said, noticing his active wear for the first time.

“We went hiking,” he said simply, and Martha just looked at Rose, talking about the Doctor with their eyes, and the air was full of familiar friendly banter that was making Rose’s heart soar. ”Oh, not you, too. No, no, no. Rose! You and Donna does that enough already, and I -” 

Rose and Martha both started laughing, and he just looked at Mickey, who shrugged. 

“They have their own language, mate, all three of them,” he said, and the Doctor just smirked. “How’s the baby?” 

“She’s good,” the Doctor said, his smirk becoming a smile, and Mickey just looked at Rose, who had begun to trace her hand along her stomach. 

“She’s been moving. Started a few days ago,” she said, and Martha’s eyes widened in awe and joy. 

“Really?!” she asked, and Rose just nodded. “Rose!” 

Mickey wanted to tease them and ask what the big deal was, but Martha looked too excited, and he smiled. 

“Well, you both look great. Rested, enjoy that while it lasts,” he said, and Rose gave him a playful look. 

“Like you know so much about sleep and babies,” she teased and he just scoffed. 

“Like you do!” he retorted, and everyone laughed for a moment, until they weren’t, and silence began to fill in around them. 

Once again, no one quite knew what to say. 

“Any luck with the diamonds?” Mickey asked, and the Doctor sighed. 

“Maybe. I don’t know,” he said. “We’re just...focusing on the baby. The rest is what it is.” 

Mickey clenched his jaw and looked at Martha, who was still walking by Rose. 

“It’s been almost three months,” Martha blurted out, and no one said anything. Mickey smirked, realizing she had probably been wanting to say all of this from the moment those trees fell, and as long as she was okay with it, so was he. “We ran into each other at a coffee shop. Ending up talking.” 

“Telling stories about you two, mostly,” Mickey said, and the Doctor just looked at him. 

“Right, yeah, like I told him about how you two showed up at my hospital with Jackie and you stopped that Viper and -” Martha said, and Mickey laughed, chiming in as well. 

“Yeah, and I told her about the Slitheen with Jack, and the school with Sarah Jane,” he said, and the Doctor smiled. 

“Right,” he said, and Rose was biting her lip, remembering that was the first time the Doctor almost told her how he felt. They both looked at each other, the memory swirling in both of their minds, and the Doctor felt his throat tighten. 

She will spend the rest of her life with him, and he will spend the rest of his with her. 

His impossible human. 

“We just….” Martha said, moving away from Rose to stand by Mickey, taking his hand. “We weren’t sure how to say it. And I know you and Mickey -” 

“Stop,” Rose said, shaking her head. 

“Told you,” Mickey told Martha, a knowing smile on his face. He looked at Rose for a moment, both listening to the unspoken words between them, and she realized what that look in his eye was when she told she was pregnant. 

Respect. 

He had wanted to say how glad he was that they found each other, and that he regretted ever standing in their way. Because if there was one thing he knew, it was that the universe needed the Doctor in the TARDIS with Rose Tyler.

“As it should be,” he said, winking at both of them, and Rose felt emotional in a way she wasn’t expecting. Martha noticed, and she just moved to hug Rose. 

“Still,” Martha said. “I-” 

“Please stop,” Rose begged kindly. “I mean it. I think this is wonderful.” 

All four of them looked at each other, and the Doctor sniffed. “We’re happy for you. And we won’t tell anyone, not until you want to.” 

“Thank you,” Martha said, biting her lip a little as she locked eyes with Mickey. “You two might want to turn away, yeah?” 

“Why?” the Doctor asked, but Rose bit her lip and turned him around with her just as Martha flung herself into Mickey’s arms, and their lips locked in a passionate and needy kiss, their first since they escaped the cave. 

Rose glanced over her shoulder for a second, and the Doctor did too, before they let their pinkies touch and they looked at each other, recognizing that kind of embrace instantly. 

He almost died. And she needed to know he was okay. 

His Adam’s apple bobbed and he looked down at his feet. Neither he nor Rose said anything, they just held hands, when suddenly they heard a very loud growl, and they froze. 

Martha and Mickey broke apart, turning toward the sound, and the Doctor’s brow furrowed, until the trees began to shake, and they all realized that the creature had somehow broken through its barricade, and it was charging after them. 

“RUN!” he shouted. 

Martha screamed a little, and Rose felt adrenaline kick in, letting her run faster than she would probably be able to otherwise. They moved through the woods until they reached the TARDIS, and Rose snapped her fingers. 

The doors flung open. 

“GET IN!” she shrieked, letting Martha and Mickey go first. The Doctor threw the rucksack through the door as Rose glanced back, and she realized the beast’s sense of smell must be better than she thought, because it was right behind them now, just a few feet away. 

In the sunlight, she got a better look at it, and she realized it was close to nine feet tall. Its fur was quite thick and matted, and its face was that of some sort of animal, but it had been contorted and twisted and it was hard to distinguish. 

It let out a loud growl and she immediately shot a beam of light at it, catching it in a gold glow, and she shot it back into the trees. She held it in place as the Doctor, who had gone inside to grab something, bolted out of the TARDIS with a stun gun, the same one they used in Los Angeles so very long ago, and he aimed it at what was just going to refer to as Sasquatch for the moment, helping it sleep. 

A moment passed, and he dropped the gun at his feet. 

“You alright?” he asked Rose, pulling her into a hug, who nodded and kissed him briefly. 

Martha and Donna were in the doorway, holding hands, and the Doctor swallowed hard as he approached Sasquatch, who was breathing deeply against the tree he had been ricoheted into, and he sighed. 

“What did you do yourself?” he muttered, grabbing a bit of blood from the wound around its eyes onto a swap of some sort, and he put it carefully in a bag he had placed in his pocket. “Everyone get inside the ship. This thing won’t stay asleep for long.” 

Rose moved quickly, closing the door behind her as the Doctor ran to his lab, and she just looked at Martha and Mickey. “How’d you two get here?” 

“Airplane,” Martha said with a small eye roll, as if it was the most pedestrian way to travel, and Rose laughed. 

“Well, you can stay with us for a bit, if you’d like,” she said, and Martha just nodded. 

“What’s he doing?” Mickey asked, glancing at the hallway the Doctor had disappeared into. 

“Figuring out if we can help it,” she murmured, and she ran her hand across the back of her neck, noticing the stress of the day had done a number on her muscles, and she shook it off. “You sure you’re both alright?” 

They nodded and she walked past them, squeezing Martha’s arm, letting her know she was giving them a moment alone as she walked to the lab. 

“Hey,” she said, leaning against the doorframe. 

“Hey,” he replied, sniffing. “TARDIS is running a scan.” 

She nodded, and he reached his hand out to her, pulling her to him so he could wrap his arm around her waist. “I told them they could stay with us for a bit.” 

“Good,” he said, kissing her forehead. “I’m sorry.” 

“What?” she murmured, staring at the screen. 

“Back there, before we found them, I know I-” he said, and she just shook her head, leaning against him entirely. 

“You git,” she said. “We were both stressed. I’m sorry, too.” 

He didn’t say anything, but he wrapped both arms around her, breathing her scent in until the TARDIS gave them their results, and the Doctor took a deep breath. 

“It’s infected with high amounts of Cryptid Molecules,” he said. 

“What’s that?” she asked. He sighed. 

“Hard to say, really,” he began. “They can form in various foods or elements, like water or wood. They’re a microbial species, and they attack cellular structures and mutate whatever they attach to. They’re ancient.” 

“Reversible?” she asked, and he nodded. 

“We can try,” he said. “Simple adjustment of cells in its blood.” She just raised an eyebrow at him, and he winked. 

He worked quickly on whatever cure he was trying to create, and Rose walked back into to the console, but Martha and Mickey had gone to one of their rooms. She smiled a little when she realized that, truly so very happy for both of them, she collapsed into the pilots seat, letting herself breathe for the first time since she saw Martha’s text. 

She found herself almost falling asleep when she heard footsteps, and Martha walked into the room with a cup of tea, which she handed to Rose. 

“Thank you,” she said, and Martha just nodded. 

“Figured you might need it,” she said. 

There was a moment where neither spoke, and Martha just sighed, running her hand through her hair. 

“How do you do it?” she asked softly. 

“Do what?” she murmured, the smell of the tea wrapping itself around her. Martha sighed. 

“Always save the day,” she said. “There was...Rose there was a moment...Where I thought he…” 

“Shhhh,” Rose said, putting the tea on the console. “It’s okay.” 

Martha began to break down, and Rose felt her stomach tighten as she watched. She moved to her, wrapping her in a hug, and Martha just let her tears fall, aware that Mickey was taking a shower and the Doctor was working, and right now she just needed her friend. 

“You saved the day, Martha, not me,” Rose said. 

“You healed him,” she whispered. “If you hadn’t shown up, Rose...He was losing so much blood. He wouldn’t…” 

She groaned and Rose just pulled her closer, rubbing her back. 

“Mickey was always going to be fine. You were there,” she said, and Martha opened her mouth to speak, but Rose just smiled at her. “I mean it. First of all, you’re a brilliant doctor, and that saved him just as much as my powers did. You knew what to do, and you bought him time.” 

“I guess,” Martha whispered. 

“But it’s more than that. You’re just...You’re good, Martha. And you’re clever. You acted quickly, and the moment you realized you needed help you rang, which meant we were on our way before Mickey got hurt. That also saved him, and we only came because of you. So don’t beat yourself up, okay?” Rose finished. 

Martha didn’t say anything, and Rose smiled at her. 

“Do you love him?” she whispered. Martha wiped her eyes. 

“I...I know it sounds crazy, it’s only been a little while, but...yeah. I do,” she said softly, and Rose’s smile got even wider. 

“Not crazy at all,” she said. “I knew I loved the Doctor the day I met him.” 

Martha looked at her, and Rose released her from her hug, returning to the pilot’s seat. 

“You’re not even a little upset that we’re dating? I wanted to tell you so many times, Rose, I just...I got scared, and I know you’re dealing with a lot, and you have the baby, and I didn’t want to make it about me or -” she said, and Rose just laughed. 

“You and the Doctor both seem to think what Mickey and I had was a lot more serious than it was,” she teased. “He’s my oldest friend, Martha. And we love each other, but it’s not like that. It, honestly...It was never like that. I think we thought it was, but... I didn’t know what love really meant until I met the Doctor.” 

Mickey appeared in the archway, about to make a joke he couldn’t remember the moment he heard Rose’s words, and he hung back, watching. 

“I think love is one of those things that just...You can’t control it. Sometimes it sneaks up on you, sometimes it hits you across the face. Sometimes it’s waiting for you to open your eyes and realize it’s been there all along, but all of it, Martha...It’s two people finding each other and holding on tight,” Rose whispered. “I know that’s true for me and the Doctor, and I saw the way Mickey looked at you today. It’s true for you, too. Even if you still, I dunno, haven’t said it out loud or whatever.” 

Martha was wiping a tear away again, and Rose just bit her lip. 

“He found you,” Rose said. “And that makes me so happy. Don’t worry about any of that other stuff, it doesn’t matter.” 

“Thank you,” Martha whispered. 

“Course,” she said, winking at her. 

Mickey cleared his throat, snapping both of their attention to the door frame, and Martha stood and crossed to him, pulling him into a hug. Mickey closed his eyes for a moment, but he opened them to nod at Rose, who just smiled and returned to sipping her tea. 

They were safe. 

The Doctor ran out into the console a few minutes later, a little too anxious to test his cure to notice the thoughtful air that was hovering above them as he called for all of them to follow. He ran out to the creature, and they watched at a distance as he injected some sort of serum into its arm, and stood slowly. 

Much to everyone’s relief, it stayed asleep, and the hair on its skin began to shorten and transform. It stirred a bit, it’s features becoming more recognizable, and the Doctor took a breath when he knew it was working, walking back to his friends and taking Rose’s hand. 

“The complete reversal process will take a couple days, but it’ll be okay,” he said, kissing her temple. 

“Is it a…” Mickey began, trying to figure out what animal it was turning back into, and the Doctor smirked. 

“Beaver?” he asked, and all three of his companions stared at him. “Apparently. HA! Come on. It’s going to be fine.”

Rose locked eyes with him before she entered the ship, and the statue suddenly came to mind. His grin faltered just a little, and he took her hand. 

“You want to go now?” he whispered. She sighed. 

“Yeah,” she said. “But...then maybe we can book a room? Seemed like a fun place to spend the night.” 

He clicked his jaw at her, a small flirtatious look on his face as she flashed him his favorite smile and hopped into the ship, and when they all walked back out, they were back in front of the Parliament building, just as the sun was setting. 

If Rose thought this place looked beautiful before, it was nothing compared to this. 

Martha was talking about how breathtaking it all was as the lights around the dock turned on and the entire city was washed in gold, but neither Rose or the Doctor could really focus on what she was saying. The statue was practically beckoning them over, and the Doctor turned to Martha and Mickey, who stopped talking when they saw the look in his eye. 

“We need to check something,” he said. “You wanna come?” 

“Um...sure,” Mickey said, and the Doctor just nodded, holding Rose’s hand as they all moved forward, the purple and pink sky of the sunset like a painting above their heads as they suddenly found themselves staring at a very tall Queen Victoria. Mickey frowned. 

“You two said...the diamonds, they -” he whispered, remembering the story they told him and the rest of Torchwood 3. Rose just looked at him, and Martha placed a hand on the pedestal, feeling the cool stone beneath her fingers. 

“What are you looking for?” she asked. 

“Might be nothing,” the Doctor said. “We saw it earlier, and it just…” 

“Felt like destiny,” Rose finished, and she pulled out her sonic screwdriver, scanning. The Doctor did the same on the other side, and all four of them looked at each inch slowly, but after a few minutes, they were about to give up. 

Until the moon appeared. 

Something began to stir in Rose and she glanced up at the sky as nightfall washed over the entire city. She walked around the pedestal one final time, and she dropped her screwdriver. 

“Doctor,” she said urgently, and he moved to her quickly, looking down at the base, where a symbol was beginning to appear, only visible by the moon. 

“Caspian’s Song…” he said. “It’s another Lunar Cipher.”

He looked at Rose, his head starting to spin, and he knelt down. Rose gripped the statue as she watched, and Mickey and Martha peered over her shoulder. 

“What’s the code?” Mickey asked. “We’ve studied Lunar Cipher’s with Torchwood. Never seen one, thought.”

“Something is different,” Rose said. 

The Doctor clenched his jaw, and they both saw it at the same time. The planet, Caspis, which they both knew was no longer a part of the constellation, was etched into the symbol in the middle of the biggest circle. 

Rose and the Doctor smiled at each other, their hearts beating in anticipation as he pressed down, and for a moment, time stood still. 

“Whoa,” Mickey whistled. 

The base of the pedestal popped open, revealing a hidden compartment. 

There was a small box inside. 

The Doctor looked at Rose as he picked it up and lifted the lid, revealing a key. It glistened in his hand, small, silver, and very uniquely shaped, and Rose bit her lip as he scanned it. 

“Just...a key,” he said. 

“To what?” Martha asked, and the Doctor sighed. 

“Answers, I’m sure,” he muttered. Rose reached out for his hand, giving it a squeeze. 

“We’ll find them,” she said. 

He sighed, and Mickey was looking at the key carefully. 

“That’s just been there all this time?” he asked.

“Possibly,” Rose said. 

The Doctor looked back at the statue, his brain starting to deduct and try to piece together all of their clues again, but he stopped himself. He slipped the key back in the box and put the entire thing in his pocket. 

“Well, s’pose I’m glad you two shagged in Canada,” he said. “Never would have found this.” 

Martha and Mickey both stared at him, and he just burst into laughter, his joke doing exactly what he hoped it would. Rose bit her lip and laughed a little, too. 

Whatever is supposed to happen, will. And they would be ready. He’d make sure of it. 

“I’m starving,” Rose said, changing the subject and saving Martha any more embarrassment, and the Doctor wrapped his arm around her waist. “And...we should fill you both in on what we’ve found over the last few weeks. Have a feeling we may need help soon.” 

The Doctor opened his mouth, about to suggest heading to the hotel, when Rose’s phone rang, and she groaned. 

“Oh, crap, I forgot to text Donna,” she said. “Hi! She’s fine, I’m so sorry!” 

“You called Donna?!” Martha asked, and Rose just gave her an apologetic look. “Did you tell her about Mickey?” 

_”What about Mickey?”_ Donna asked through the phone and the Doctor looked down at his feet to hide his smile, the look on every single one of their faces making him laugh as Martha bit the bullet and filled Donna in on her love life, causing their friend to shout loudly through the phone, and Rose began to laugh. 

They were all talking over each other excitedly, showing off their language Mickey had mentioned earlier, and he looked at the Doctor, and they both smiled. 

His little Earth family. 

“Oh! You’ll never guess this either, Donna,” Rose said. “We found Bigfoot! Dead serious! Well, I guess… Here, the Doctor can explain.” 

They all began to walk to the hotel, Donna on speaker as the Doctor explained the creature they found, only to be interrupted by Donna asking more questions about Mickey and Martha, and their laughter reverberated into the heavens, dancing with the stars, which were watching and waiting. 

Time was ticking, and the universe was waiting for a little girl to howl.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much again to everyone who is reading and bearing with me as the puzzle pieces slowly come together. I am enjoying writing these little adventures, and the baby will be here before we know it! Sending lots of love and I hope all is going well. Next one will be out soon, I try to update between every 2 - 5 days. 
> 
> Thank you again!


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